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Ellen Goodman (born April 11, 1941) is an American
journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...
and syndicated
columnist A columnist is a person who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Column (periodical), Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs. They take the ...
. She won a
Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...
in 1980. She is also a speaker and commentator.


Career

Goodman's career began as a researcher and reporter for ''
Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly news magazine based in New York City. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely distributed during the 20th century and has had many notable editors-in-chief. It is currently co-owned by Dev P ...
'' magazine between 1963 and 1965. She was a reporter at the ''
Detroit Free Press The ''Detroit Free Press'' (commonly referred to as the ''Freep'') is a major daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest local newspaper owned by Gannett (the publisher of ''USA Today''), and is operated by the Detro ...
'' starting in 1965 and has worked as an associate editor at ''
The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...
'' since 1967. Her column was syndicated by The Washington Post Writers Group in 1976. In 1996, she taught at
Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...
as the first Lorry I. Lokey Visiting professor in Professional Journalism.Profile
ellengoodman.com; accessed March 29, 2015.
In 1998, Goodman received the
Elijah Parish Lovejoy Elijah Parish Lovejoy (November 9, 1802 – November 7, 1837) was an American Presbyterianism, Presbyterian minister (Christianity), minister, journalist, Editing, newspaper editor, and Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist. After his ...
Award as well as an honorary
Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...
degree from
Colby College Colby College is a private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine, United States. Founded in 1813 as the Maine Literary and Theological Institution, it was renamed Waterville College in 1821. The donations of Christian philanthropist Gardner ...
. She compared " anthropogenic warming deniers" to holocaust deniers. She announced her retirement in her final column, which ran on January 1, 2010.


Education

Goodman attended
Brookline High School Brookline High School is a four-year public high school in Brookline, Massachusetts. It is a part of Public Schools of Brookline. As of the 2023–24 school year, 2117 students were enrolled in the high school, served by 191.8 teachers (on an ...
in
Brookline, Massachusetts Brookline () is an affluent town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States, and part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area. An exclave of Norfolk County, Brookline borders six of Boston's neighborhoods: Brighton, Boston, Brighton ...
for two years and graduated in 1959 from Buckingham School, now Buckingham Browne & Nichols. She graduated
cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...
from
Radcliffe College Radcliffe College was a Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that was founded in 1879. In 1999, it was fully incorporated into Harvard Colle ...
in 1963 with a degree in modern European history. A year later, she returned to
Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...
as a Nieman Fellow. At Harvard, Goodman studied the dynamics of social change. In 2007, Goodman studied gender and the news at
John F. Kennedy School of Government The John F. Kennedy School of Government, commonly referred to as Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), is the school of public policy of Harvard University, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard Kennedy School offers master's de ...
where she was a Shorenstein Fellow.


Personal life

Goodman was born to a
Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
familyJewish Journal: "When Jews on the Left See Americans on the Right as Nazis" by Dennis Prager
May 4, 2010
in
Newton, Massachusetts Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is located roughly west of Downtown Boston, and comprises a patchwork of thirteen villages. The city borders Boston to the northeast and southeast (via the neighborhoods of ...
, to Jackson Jacob Holtz, and Edith (née Weinstein) Holtz. Her elder sister was the late critic and author Jane Holtz Kay. She married her first husband, Anthony Goodman, in 1963 and in 1968, gave birth to their daughter Katie Goodman, a musical comedian. After the couple divorced, she married ''Boston Globe'' journalist Robert Levey in 1982. Her stepson, Gregory Levey, died by self-immolation in 1991 protesting the First Gulf War.


Awards

Goodman won the
Pulitzer Prize for Commentary The Pulitzer Prize for Commentary is an award administered by the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism "for distinguished commentary, using any available journalistic tool". It is one of the fourteen American Pulitzer Prizes that are ...
in 1980.Profile
pulitzer.org; accessed March 29, 2015; retrieved 2013-10-31.
Another accolade is the American Society of Newspaper Editors' (now the
American Society of News Editors The American Society of News Editors (ASNE) was a membership organization for editing, editors, news director, producers or directors in charge of journalistic organizations or departments, Dean (education), deans or faculty at Journalism school, ...
) Distinguished Writing Award (1980). In 1988, Goodman won the Hubert H. Humphrey Civil Rights Award from the
Leadership Conference on Civil Rights The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is an American coalition of more than 240 national civil and human rights organizations and acts as an umbrella group for American civil and human rights. Founded as the Leadership Conference on ...
. She was awarded the President's Award by the
National Women's Political Caucus The National Women's Political Caucus (NWPC) is an organization which was founded in 1971 by leaders of the women's liberation movement to promote women's participation in government. The group describes itself as a multi-partisan grassroots or ...
in 1993. A year later, she was given the American Woman Award by the Women's Research & Education Institute. In 2008, she won the Ernie Pyle Award for Lifetime Achievement from the National Society of Newspaper Columnists. She was awarded the
Ashoka Ashoka, also known as Asoka or Aśoka ( ; , ; – 232 BCE), and popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was List of Mauryan emperors, Emperor of Magadha from until #Death, his death in 232 BCE, and the third ruler from the Mauryan dynast ...
Fellowship in 2014 for her work.


The Conversation Project

In 2010, Goodman started "The Conversation Project", a group dedicated to the wishes of
end-of-life care End-of-life care is health care provided in the time leading up to a person's death. End-of-life care can be provided in the hours, days, or months before a person dies and encompasses care and support for a person's mental and emotional needs, phy ...
. Goodman serves as the co-founder and director of the group.


Books

* ''Turning Points'' (1979) * ''Close to Home'' (1979) * ''At Large'' (1981) * ''Keeping in Touch'' (1985) * ''Making Sense'' (1989) * ''Value Judgments'' (1993) * ''I Know Just What You Mean: the power of friendship in women's lives'' (2000), by Goodman and Patricia O'Brien * ''Paper Trail: common sense in uncommon times'' (2004)


References


Further reading

*


External links

*
Brief bio
at the Boston Globe
Conversation Project

Ellen Goodman Articles
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Goodman, Ellen 1941 births Living people American women journalists American women non-fiction writers American political writers The Boston Globe people Elijah Parish Lovejoy Award recipients Jewish American journalists Jewish American non-fiction writers People from Greater Boston Pulitzer Prize for Commentary winners Radcliffe College alumni Detroit Free Press people Buckingham Browne & Nichols School alumni Nieman Fellows American social entrepreneurs 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American women